cant beat driving..... done it loads of times.
There are five of us so much cheaper to drive than pay for five flight tickets.

have done different routes and tried no stopovers, and one stopover.
I dont recommend the non stop as 16 hrs straight was a bit much...!!

time it so you can leave and get a 3pm-ish tunnel crossing...(the only way to cross in my opinion ).
then straight off the train floor it to the other side of Paris.
Avoid Paris at all costs....your sat nav will take you round the ring road and its horrendous.
you should get to the other side of Paris about 8-9pm.
We have stayed in Orleans directly south of paris, and on a different route we stayed in a great hotel south west of paris near Troyes,
Get a decent night kip and get up early and head south....you should be in Perpignan region for 4-5pm.

coming home we leave nice and early and floor it across the entire Country, cross using the tunnel again and stop over in a hotel in kent, then we head back home the following morning...

its great using your own car especially if you have tvs in the back for the kids like we do.... so while me and the missus are crossing the french spanish border over the top of the Pyrenees taking in the views the kids are watching spongebob in the back...!!

Thanks for that. I had wondered about going to Southampton or Portsmouth and getting the ferry, which does reduce the driving a bit in England and France, but mid-season ferries are pretty pricey, and I'm sure the Chunnel would be a lot cheaper. On the other hand, an overnight ferry and an early start in France with around a 600 mile journey could mean a fairly comfortable 300 mile to half-way, and one overnight stop. But if taking the Chunnel option, I'm sure your advice about avoiding Paris is sound, I've never been round the peripherique, and I'm in no hurry to start! I don't have TV in the back, then again, no kids either!

If you fly you have plenty of airports in fairly close distance.You can normally get cheap flights to Barcelona and stop a night or two there,although accommodation and drink/food ain't cheap but if you've never been it's worth a visit.

wouldnt go to perpignan id go to spain then drive over.

Now thats interesting not a fan of air travel,not the flight,just the hassle getting there through airports etc.

You would have to be a Euston for 9.00amish, but would be an interesting journey, and totally stress free.

Go on ferry from Poole to St Malo, shorter journey in miles, a few hours longer as you going by ferry but that's a bonus as you can get a hot meal and a decent kip, plus it's nicer scenery on the west side of France

Very do-able.......but booking the entire journey on the Eurostar website is a must.

I checked a couple of years ago, but couldn't go in the end.
I've just checked again and I could get a a return ticket from Warrington bank quay to Perpignan station for as little as £107 per person. Obviously like planes peak prices are a bit much. ...and Its a 12 hr journey because you waste a few hours changing stations in London and paris.

But I quite like the idea of doing that journey once.

Considering I used to pay £88 for a return from Wiltshire to Wigan, that sounds a bargain...

Barcelona-Sants to Perpignan (1hr 20m) return on the train was €120 last year. Yes you read that correctly. I was expecting Bollinger, caviar and a Thai massage with a happy ending.

Done Eurostar to Paris then Paris to Perpignan by train on the TVG double decker (Paris to Barcelona train) . Long day but interesting if you like train journeys. French train system very good and bargain's can be had if you search well .

Prefer flying as it gives you more time in Perp.

St Malo to Perpignan is dual carriagway all the way once you get out of St Malo, all nice smooth roads (they where last time i drove on them), cutting through some gorgeous countryside, yes the journey is 3 or 4 hours longer but at least you can get some hot food and a couple of hours shut eye on the ferry unlike the tunnel and it works out around 60/70 miles shorter round trip, less traffic as well and no illegal immigrants scaring the crap out of everyone

God, yes, I wouldn't consider anywhere west of St. Malo. And I can see that Calais might be place it'd be nice to avoid these days.

I think you would need at least two people to make driving feasible: I did a quick check on ferry costs yesterday, and I reckon with an overnight crossing and cabin (which you'd want) you'd be talking around the 400 quid mark for ferries alone. If the St Malo crossing, probably more still. Say 1200 miles each way @10 miles/ litre = 240 litres, best part of 300 quid in fuel.